There are known methods wherein silver halide color photographic materials are processed with color developing solutions containing aromatic primary amine developing agents after exposure to light to form a color image. It is known that in the above-described color image forming methods, the developing agents are oxidized by oxygen in air, and the oxidants of the developing agents are reacted with color couplers in the unexposed area or low-exposed area of the photographic material to form a dye and as a result, color fogging is caused. It is also known that when conventional color photographic materials containing color couplers having different color sensitivity and forming different hues are processed, the oxidant of the developing agent formed in a color-sensitive layer is diffused in another color-sensitive layer and reacted with color couplers and as a result, color contamination (color mixing) occurs.
JP-B-61-13748 (the term "JP-B" as used herein means an "examined Japanese patent publication") and U.S. Pat. No. 4,430,425 propose a method using hydroquinone compounds as means for preventing the undesired color fogging and color contamination from occurring.
These compounds have certainly an effect of preventing the above-described color fogging or color contamination from occurring. However, the effect obtained thereby is low, and there are disadvantages that solubility is low and preservability is poor. Accordingly, it has been demanded to provide hydroquinone compounds which are free from the above disadvantages and have excellent performance on the whole.